Things can only get worse for Australian renters

Advertisement

Australia’s rental market has experienced record-tight vacancy rates and explosive rental growth over the past five years.

The nation’s vacancy rate fell to a record low of 1.5% in September 2025 and, as of January 2026, was tracking at 1.7%—well below the pre-COVID level:

Rental vacancy rates

Chart by Justin Fabo at Antipodean Macro

The full text of this article is available to MacroBusiness subscribers

$1 for your first month, then:
Cancel at any time through our billing provider, Stripe
About the author
Leith van Onselen is Chief Economist at the MB Fund and MB Super. He is also a co-founder of MacroBusiness. Leith has previously worked at the Australian Treasury, Victorian Treasury and Goldman Sachs.